A/N: Hey, my cable modem is still acting up. Sometimes I can get on it for
like 3 minutes, and sometimes it won't even let me on! Ah well, I'll take
what I get. Oh and just so you know, this is a combo of chapter 6 and 7.
Sorry for making it all confusing, but it just flows better if I put them
together! Anyway, enough of my complaints!
"Attention Junior class, please report to Mr. Walden's classroom immediately after assembly for student government nominations," the announcer's voice, which belonged to Father Dominic, rang out in the assembly yard. I glanced over in Suze's direction, and noticed she was looking at her fingernails calmly, not even looking the least bit nervous. Finally, after a little prayer, every grade went their separate ways. The junior class flooded in Mr. Walden's room as we were commanded. Kelly motioned for me to come and sit next to her and her crowd. Suze sat next to CeeCee and Adam. Suze saw me, and I smiled and gave her a quick wink, which I had a tendency to do when I saw her. She just rolled her eyes and took her seat.
"As you know," Mr. Walden said once the class quieted down, "Every year we elect a president and vice president for your class. Last year's president was Kelly Prescott and last year's vice president was Susannah Simon. We'll start taking nominations now, and remember, this isn't a popularity contest." Yeah, right. But I think the only people that found that funny were Suze, CeeCee, Adam, and I because we all chuckled softly. "Let's Begin," Mr. Walden beckoned us. Debbie Mancuso's hand shot up in a flash. "Who would you like to nominate Miss Mancuso?" Mr. Walden asked. "I'd like to nominate Kelly Prescott for president and Paul Slater for VP," she replied in a very professional manner. Of course, she rehearsed that line for the past 10 minutes so it would be absolutely perfect. "I second," Brad Ackerman raised his hand slightly. I looked at Suze, who looked a little shocked as she turned around to look at me. She shrugged her shoulders and turned her pretty face back towards the front of the classroom. CeeCee, however, looked absolutely appalled. She turned around and glared at me with her enraged purple eyes. Adam was glaring at me too, shaking his head.
"Any more nominations?" Mr. Walden asked while he was writing our names on the board. CeeCee's hand rose. "Suze Simon, vice president," she said as she shot me another glance. Suze kicked her beneath the desk. "Ow! What is wrong with you?" CeeCee asked angrily. Suze hissed, "I don't want to be vice president! Put your arm down!" What? Was Suze afraid of a little competition? The whole class started to snicker and chatter about it. Mr. Walden, after many attempts to quiet us down, threw a piece of chalk at the door and yelled, "You all better brush up on your American History. Your lack of seriousness has earned you all a 500 word essay on the Battle of Gettysburg." The class instantly grew quiet. Adam McTavish rose his hand and seconded CeeCee's nomination. The nominations ended with some geek nominating one of their own to be president. Of course, by the looks of things, Kelly had already won the election as president. Because despite what Mr. Walden said about it not being a popularity contest, everyone knew he was wrong. Mr. Walden dismissed us to go to our next class. As everyone filed out of the classroom, I sidled next to CeeCee and whispered in her ear, "Let the political mudslinging begin." The look on her face was priceless. She looked like she wanted to slap me, but instead she just mumbled, "Whatever, Slater, prepare to lose." She stalked away angrily, which only caused me to laugh.
Kelly caught up with me later on, and together we hung up posters around the school. Well, not really around the school...but just in different classrooms because the administration did not want silly posters strung around while tourists were there. Since the night before, she had been acting rather strangely. I'd go as far to say she was being annoying. She would hang all over me and laugh at everything I said. Of course, I didn't want to be mean to her because she was my running mate. We were a team. So I just kinda dealt with it.
Finally it was time for study hall. During that time you could either go to the computer lab or the library. That day I chose the computer lab (guess why). I walked into the computer filled lab and winked at the lab moderator, Mrs. Tarentino. Then I saw Suze, sitting at one of the cheap, old looking computers with her shoes kicked off. She wasn't typing anything on the computer. She was just staring blankly at something on her notebook. I slipped behind the chair she was sitting in and cooed in her ear, "Miss me, Suze?"
"Leave me alone," she said in a calm, distant tone. "Aw, come on, Simon. Admit it. You don't hate me half as much as you pretend to," I said while grabbing a chair and straddling it. "I wouldn't bet on it," she said as she tapped her pencil and shot me a get-back stare. I couldn't help but smile. She was nervous. And nervous people tend to do a lot more listening; thus they are more easily influenced. "Listen, Paul, I have a lot of work to do..."
I took her notebook that she was blankly staring at a few moments ago. She had doodled the name Craig Jankow on the margin of what I guessed was her trig homework. "Who's Craig Jankow?" I asked suspiciously. She tried to snatch it away. "Nobody," she said all nonchalantly. But there was nothing nonchalant about it, to me at least. "Oh, that's good. I thought maybe he'd gone and replaced me in your affections," I said truthfully. Wait a minute. "Does Jesse know? About this Craig guy, I mean?" I asked curiously. Because if he didn't know, I told myself, then that meant Suze was lying to him and that would ultimately mean that she didn't love him. She glared at me for a few moments, not saying anything back. She was looking around the room, possibly looking for something or someone to save her. But I kept staring straight at her which, sadly, seemed to make her even more annoyed at me. But I figured that since I had hit rock bottom the only other way to go was up. Right?
She whispered harshly, "Craig happens to be dead." "So, I thought that was how you like 'em," I said with a grin. Well, Jesse was dead, and that didn't stop her from falling in love with him. Maybe I should get killed...maybe then she'd like me. "You are insufferable," she said as she tried unsuccessfully to get her notebook back. "There's something to be said for having a dead boyfriend, I suppose," I mused as I looked at her trig homework, "I mean, you don't have to worry about introducing him to your parents, since they can't see him, anyway." "Craig's NOT my boyfriend," she said rather defensively, "I'm trying to help him. He showed up at my house yesterday..."
"Oh, God, not another one of those charity cases you and the good father are always taking on," I said as I rolled my eyes. I mean seriously, who wants to help them out anyway? They're just burdensome. And when you help one out, you don't even get as much as a thank you. They just stop pestering you. But Suze was convinced that this was her sole duty in life. "Helping lost souls find their was is my job, after all," she said with some choler. "Who says?" I asked. Where in the world did she get all of this? "Well...it just...it just is," she faltered. Ah, this was beginning to get boring for me. Not Suze, of course she wasn't boring. I mean, the part where she thought she was put on this earth to help pathetic ghosties. Oh, and to ignore potential future boyfriends that were perfect for her because she loves a ghost. But anyway, I was so bored about it that I found a pencil and started doing her homework for her. Brownie points, anyone?
"I wonder," I said looking up from the trig worksheet into her emerald eyes, "It doesn't seem fair to me that we were just handed this mediator thing at birth without so much as a contract or list of employee benefits. I mean, I never signed up for this mediator thing. Did you?" I knew she could relate to that. "Of course not," she replied, looking curious about what I would say next. I thought of more stuff she could relate to, "And how do you know what your job responsibilities even consist of? Yeah, you THINK you're supposed to help the dead move on to their final destination, because once you do, they stop bugging you, and you can get on with your life again. But I've got a question for you. Who told you it was up to you? Who told you how it was done, even?" She blinked a few times, apparently lacking a genuine answer for me. Now it was time for the hook, "Right. Nobody told you. But what if I said I knew? What if I told you I'd found something- something that dated back to the first days of actual written communication- that exactly described mediators, though that wasn't what we were called back then, and their real purpose, not to mention techniques?" Her perfect mouth gaped open a little. I searched her eyes for an answer. "If you really had something like that, I guess I'd say...show me," she wavered. "Fine, come over to my place after school and I will," I said, pleased by her questioning and curiosity.
She got up from her seat in a flash and replied fretfully as she grabbed her books, "No. No way!" "Hmmm, I thought as much. You want to know but not enough to risk your reputation." I wasn't surprised at all. I knew she'd be hesitant at first, but I could somehow persuade her. "It isn't my reputation I'm worried about. It's my life. You tried to kill me once, remember?" she shrieked a little loudly. That gathered a lot of looks, especially from Mrs. Tarentino. "Not again," I said boredly. Seriously, it's like we're talking in circles here. "Listen, Suze, I told you...Well, I guess it doesn't matter what I told you. You're going to believe what you want to believe. But, seriously, you could have gotten out of there any time you wanted to." If you would have listened to me, I added in my head. "But Jesse couldn't have, could he? Thanks to you," she hissed angrily. Well, actually he could have. But I wasn't going to give her any ideas. So I shrugged and responded, "Well, no. Not Jesse. But really, Suze, don't you think you're overreacting? I mean, what's the big deal? The guy's already dead." "You are a PIG!" she stated, her voice quivering. Then she started to walk away. But she left her shoes under the computer desk and her trig homework with me. "Uh, Suze, Aren't you forgetting something?" I asked calmly on the outside. But on the inside I was laughing hysterically. "Oh, you mean, did I forget to tell you not to speak to me again? Yes," she hissed as she shot me an evil-looking glare. "No," I said trying to stifle a laugh, "Aren't those your shoes under there?" I hated to rain on her parade and wreck her perfect soap-opera dramatic exit, but I didn't want her to get in trouble for walking bare-foot around school. "Oh," she seemed disappointed. She crammed her blistered feet into her shoes. "Before you go, Cinderella, you might also want to take this," I said as I gave her trig homework back with a smile. She looked over it and seemed impressed. "Thanks," she said sheepishly. Then as she was about to leave, I caught her and asked about Craig. "Paul, seriously. Thanks, but I do not need your help," she sighed as she sat down again. "I think you do," I insisted, "What's this Craig guy want, anyway?"
"He wants what all ghosts want. To be alive again," she responded boredly. "Well, of course. I mean, what's he want besides that?" I asked curiously. She shrugged, "I don't know yet. He's got this thing with his little brother...thinks he should have been the one to die not him. Jesse thinks..." She stopped as if she didn't want to get Jesse into this. "Jesse thinks what?" I asked, mildly interested in what Rico Suave had to say on the matter. She sighed, "Jesse thinks Craig's going to try to kill his brother. You know, out of revenge." "Which, will, of course get him exactly nowhere. When will they ever learn? Now, if he wanted to be his brother, that would be a different story," I spilled as I rolled my eyes. Oops, silly me. I just spouted about soul transference. This concept, I knew, would catch her eye. "Be his brother?" she repeated out loud. "What do you mean?"
"You know, soul transference. Take over his brother's body," I explained with a shrug. She looked positively floored by what I had just said. Hey, I felt the same way when my grandfather first told me of my potential. "Take over his brother's body? What are you talking about?" she asked incredulously. "Doesn't sound familiar, eh? What has the good father been teaching you, I wonder? Not much, from the sound of things," I teased. "What are you talking about," she repeated demandingly, "How can someone take over someone else's body?" Now, my friends, that's the question I wanted to hear. I leaned back in my chair, putting my hands behind my head almost victoriously. "I told you, that there was a lot you didn't know about being a mediator. And a lot more I could teach you, if you'd just give me the chance."
Now I had her. She stared at me, and I could tell she was contemplating deeply what I had just told her. She wanted to know. Her curiosity was more evident than her fear at that moment, because she really wanted to know. And there was no way now she could avoid me then, because she really, really wanted to know.
"All right," she replied, swallowing hard, "All right. I'll come over to your place after school. But only if you'll tell me about...about that."
I had her. She was mine, now. Mine, all mine! I could teach her so many things, things that would make her powerful. So powerful that she could be queen of the universe. And I could be her king. Together, we could rule the world. No, not the world, it's too small...the universe!
"Fine. I'll pick you up by the main gate at three. Be there on time, or I'll leave without you," I said with a smile. But I had a feeling that I wouldn't have to worry about that. Leaving without her, I mean. Because I knew she would show up.
I picked up my bag and left the computer lab, still smiling. I walked down the hallway smugly. I saw Adam McTavish heading for the bathroom. "What're you all happy about, Slater?" he asked me bitterly. "Oh, nothing," I replied, my smile growing bigger, "Nothing at all."
A/N: 5 pages, my friends, 5 glorious pages on Word. Of course, it was 2 chapters fizzled together, but give me some credit here. I'm having issues coming up with good chapter titles so they're all lame-o. If anyone has suggestions of what I should rename my chapter to...please pretty please tell me! Oh and should I up the rating to PG-13? You know, because of the kissing scene and much later on, the fight scene? Love ya'll!
"Attention Junior class, please report to Mr. Walden's classroom immediately after assembly for student government nominations," the announcer's voice, which belonged to Father Dominic, rang out in the assembly yard. I glanced over in Suze's direction, and noticed she was looking at her fingernails calmly, not even looking the least bit nervous. Finally, after a little prayer, every grade went their separate ways. The junior class flooded in Mr. Walden's room as we were commanded. Kelly motioned for me to come and sit next to her and her crowd. Suze sat next to CeeCee and Adam. Suze saw me, and I smiled and gave her a quick wink, which I had a tendency to do when I saw her. She just rolled her eyes and took her seat.
"As you know," Mr. Walden said once the class quieted down, "Every year we elect a president and vice president for your class. Last year's president was Kelly Prescott and last year's vice president was Susannah Simon. We'll start taking nominations now, and remember, this isn't a popularity contest." Yeah, right. But I think the only people that found that funny were Suze, CeeCee, Adam, and I because we all chuckled softly. "Let's Begin," Mr. Walden beckoned us. Debbie Mancuso's hand shot up in a flash. "Who would you like to nominate Miss Mancuso?" Mr. Walden asked. "I'd like to nominate Kelly Prescott for president and Paul Slater for VP," she replied in a very professional manner. Of course, she rehearsed that line for the past 10 minutes so it would be absolutely perfect. "I second," Brad Ackerman raised his hand slightly. I looked at Suze, who looked a little shocked as she turned around to look at me. She shrugged her shoulders and turned her pretty face back towards the front of the classroom. CeeCee, however, looked absolutely appalled. She turned around and glared at me with her enraged purple eyes. Adam was glaring at me too, shaking his head.
"Any more nominations?" Mr. Walden asked while he was writing our names on the board. CeeCee's hand rose. "Suze Simon, vice president," she said as she shot me another glance. Suze kicked her beneath the desk. "Ow! What is wrong with you?" CeeCee asked angrily. Suze hissed, "I don't want to be vice president! Put your arm down!" What? Was Suze afraid of a little competition? The whole class started to snicker and chatter about it. Mr. Walden, after many attempts to quiet us down, threw a piece of chalk at the door and yelled, "You all better brush up on your American History. Your lack of seriousness has earned you all a 500 word essay on the Battle of Gettysburg." The class instantly grew quiet. Adam McTavish rose his hand and seconded CeeCee's nomination. The nominations ended with some geek nominating one of their own to be president. Of course, by the looks of things, Kelly had already won the election as president. Because despite what Mr. Walden said about it not being a popularity contest, everyone knew he was wrong. Mr. Walden dismissed us to go to our next class. As everyone filed out of the classroom, I sidled next to CeeCee and whispered in her ear, "Let the political mudslinging begin." The look on her face was priceless. She looked like she wanted to slap me, but instead she just mumbled, "Whatever, Slater, prepare to lose." She stalked away angrily, which only caused me to laugh.
Kelly caught up with me later on, and together we hung up posters around the school. Well, not really around the school...but just in different classrooms because the administration did not want silly posters strung around while tourists were there. Since the night before, she had been acting rather strangely. I'd go as far to say she was being annoying. She would hang all over me and laugh at everything I said. Of course, I didn't want to be mean to her because she was my running mate. We were a team. So I just kinda dealt with it.
Finally it was time for study hall. During that time you could either go to the computer lab or the library. That day I chose the computer lab (guess why). I walked into the computer filled lab and winked at the lab moderator, Mrs. Tarentino. Then I saw Suze, sitting at one of the cheap, old looking computers with her shoes kicked off. She wasn't typing anything on the computer. She was just staring blankly at something on her notebook. I slipped behind the chair she was sitting in and cooed in her ear, "Miss me, Suze?"
"Leave me alone," she said in a calm, distant tone. "Aw, come on, Simon. Admit it. You don't hate me half as much as you pretend to," I said while grabbing a chair and straddling it. "I wouldn't bet on it," she said as she tapped her pencil and shot me a get-back stare. I couldn't help but smile. She was nervous. And nervous people tend to do a lot more listening; thus they are more easily influenced. "Listen, Paul, I have a lot of work to do..."
I took her notebook that she was blankly staring at a few moments ago. She had doodled the name Craig Jankow on the margin of what I guessed was her trig homework. "Who's Craig Jankow?" I asked suspiciously. She tried to snatch it away. "Nobody," she said all nonchalantly. But there was nothing nonchalant about it, to me at least. "Oh, that's good. I thought maybe he'd gone and replaced me in your affections," I said truthfully. Wait a minute. "Does Jesse know? About this Craig guy, I mean?" I asked curiously. Because if he didn't know, I told myself, then that meant Suze was lying to him and that would ultimately mean that she didn't love him. She glared at me for a few moments, not saying anything back. She was looking around the room, possibly looking for something or someone to save her. But I kept staring straight at her which, sadly, seemed to make her even more annoyed at me. But I figured that since I had hit rock bottom the only other way to go was up. Right?
She whispered harshly, "Craig happens to be dead." "So, I thought that was how you like 'em," I said with a grin. Well, Jesse was dead, and that didn't stop her from falling in love with him. Maybe I should get killed...maybe then she'd like me. "You are insufferable," she said as she tried unsuccessfully to get her notebook back. "There's something to be said for having a dead boyfriend, I suppose," I mused as I looked at her trig homework, "I mean, you don't have to worry about introducing him to your parents, since they can't see him, anyway." "Craig's NOT my boyfriend," she said rather defensively, "I'm trying to help him. He showed up at my house yesterday..."
"Oh, God, not another one of those charity cases you and the good father are always taking on," I said as I rolled my eyes. I mean seriously, who wants to help them out anyway? They're just burdensome. And when you help one out, you don't even get as much as a thank you. They just stop pestering you. But Suze was convinced that this was her sole duty in life. "Helping lost souls find their was is my job, after all," she said with some choler. "Who says?" I asked. Where in the world did she get all of this? "Well...it just...it just is," she faltered. Ah, this was beginning to get boring for me. Not Suze, of course she wasn't boring. I mean, the part where she thought she was put on this earth to help pathetic ghosties. Oh, and to ignore potential future boyfriends that were perfect for her because she loves a ghost. But anyway, I was so bored about it that I found a pencil and started doing her homework for her. Brownie points, anyone?
"I wonder," I said looking up from the trig worksheet into her emerald eyes, "It doesn't seem fair to me that we were just handed this mediator thing at birth without so much as a contract or list of employee benefits. I mean, I never signed up for this mediator thing. Did you?" I knew she could relate to that. "Of course not," she replied, looking curious about what I would say next. I thought of more stuff she could relate to, "And how do you know what your job responsibilities even consist of? Yeah, you THINK you're supposed to help the dead move on to their final destination, because once you do, they stop bugging you, and you can get on with your life again. But I've got a question for you. Who told you it was up to you? Who told you how it was done, even?" She blinked a few times, apparently lacking a genuine answer for me. Now it was time for the hook, "Right. Nobody told you. But what if I said I knew? What if I told you I'd found something- something that dated back to the first days of actual written communication- that exactly described mediators, though that wasn't what we were called back then, and their real purpose, not to mention techniques?" Her perfect mouth gaped open a little. I searched her eyes for an answer. "If you really had something like that, I guess I'd say...show me," she wavered. "Fine, come over to my place after school and I will," I said, pleased by her questioning and curiosity.
She got up from her seat in a flash and replied fretfully as she grabbed her books, "No. No way!" "Hmmm, I thought as much. You want to know but not enough to risk your reputation." I wasn't surprised at all. I knew she'd be hesitant at first, but I could somehow persuade her. "It isn't my reputation I'm worried about. It's my life. You tried to kill me once, remember?" she shrieked a little loudly. That gathered a lot of looks, especially from Mrs. Tarentino. "Not again," I said boredly. Seriously, it's like we're talking in circles here. "Listen, Suze, I told you...Well, I guess it doesn't matter what I told you. You're going to believe what you want to believe. But, seriously, you could have gotten out of there any time you wanted to." If you would have listened to me, I added in my head. "But Jesse couldn't have, could he? Thanks to you," she hissed angrily. Well, actually he could have. But I wasn't going to give her any ideas. So I shrugged and responded, "Well, no. Not Jesse. But really, Suze, don't you think you're overreacting? I mean, what's the big deal? The guy's already dead." "You are a PIG!" she stated, her voice quivering. Then she started to walk away. But she left her shoes under the computer desk and her trig homework with me. "Uh, Suze, Aren't you forgetting something?" I asked calmly on the outside. But on the inside I was laughing hysterically. "Oh, you mean, did I forget to tell you not to speak to me again? Yes," she hissed as she shot me an evil-looking glare. "No," I said trying to stifle a laugh, "Aren't those your shoes under there?" I hated to rain on her parade and wreck her perfect soap-opera dramatic exit, but I didn't want her to get in trouble for walking bare-foot around school. "Oh," she seemed disappointed. She crammed her blistered feet into her shoes. "Before you go, Cinderella, you might also want to take this," I said as I gave her trig homework back with a smile. She looked over it and seemed impressed. "Thanks," she said sheepishly. Then as she was about to leave, I caught her and asked about Craig. "Paul, seriously. Thanks, but I do not need your help," she sighed as she sat down again. "I think you do," I insisted, "What's this Craig guy want, anyway?"
"He wants what all ghosts want. To be alive again," she responded boredly. "Well, of course. I mean, what's he want besides that?" I asked curiously. She shrugged, "I don't know yet. He's got this thing with his little brother...thinks he should have been the one to die not him. Jesse thinks..." She stopped as if she didn't want to get Jesse into this. "Jesse thinks what?" I asked, mildly interested in what Rico Suave had to say on the matter. She sighed, "Jesse thinks Craig's going to try to kill his brother. You know, out of revenge." "Which, will, of course get him exactly nowhere. When will they ever learn? Now, if he wanted to be his brother, that would be a different story," I spilled as I rolled my eyes. Oops, silly me. I just spouted about soul transference. This concept, I knew, would catch her eye. "Be his brother?" she repeated out loud. "What do you mean?"
"You know, soul transference. Take over his brother's body," I explained with a shrug. She looked positively floored by what I had just said. Hey, I felt the same way when my grandfather first told me of my potential. "Take over his brother's body? What are you talking about?" she asked incredulously. "Doesn't sound familiar, eh? What has the good father been teaching you, I wonder? Not much, from the sound of things," I teased. "What are you talking about," she repeated demandingly, "How can someone take over someone else's body?" Now, my friends, that's the question I wanted to hear. I leaned back in my chair, putting my hands behind my head almost victoriously. "I told you, that there was a lot you didn't know about being a mediator. And a lot more I could teach you, if you'd just give me the chance."
Now I had her. She stared at me, and I could tell she was contemplating deeply what I had just told her. She wanted to know. Her curiosity was more evident than her fear at that moment, because she really wanted to know. And there was no way now she could avoid me then, because she really, really wanted to know.
"All right," she replied, swallowing hard, "All right. I'll come over to your place after school. But only if you'll tell me about...about that."
I had her. She was mine, now. Mine, all mine! I could teach her so many things, things that would make her powerful. So powerful that she could be queen of the universe. And I could be her king. Together, we could rule the world. No, not the world, it's too small...the universe!
"Fine. I'll pick you up by the main gate at three. Be there on time, or I'll leave without you," I said with a smile. But I had a feeling that I wouldn't have to worry about that. Leaving without her, I mean. Because I knew she would show up.
I picked up my bag and left the computer lab, still smiling. I walked down the hallway smugly. I saw Adam McTavish heading for the bathroom. "What're you all happy about, Slater?" he asked me bitterly. "Oh, nothing," I replied, my smile growing bigger, "Nothing at all."
A/N: 5 pages, my friends, 5 glorious pages on Word. Of course, it was 2 chapters fizzled together, but give me some credit here. I'm having issues coming up with good chapter titles so they're all lame-o. If anyone has suggestions of what I should rename my chapter to...please pretty please tell me! Oh and should I up the rating to PG-13? You know, because of the kissing scene and much later on, the fight scene? Love ya'll!
